Tipsy Gold Coast bridesmaid gives Kiwi cops the runaround

The Aussie love for a festive tipple caused headaches for Kiwi cops across New Zealand at the weekend.

Police across the Tasman had to send out separate search and rescue teams to find a too-merry Gold Coast bridesmaid and wayward Tasmanian fishing enthusiast in two holiday expeditions gone wrong.

In the first, a drunken bridesmaid sparked a four-hour search after losing her way from the reception to her accommodation in a rural area outside Auckland.

The 26-year-old disappeared in the early hours of yesterday morning and after failed helicopter and sniffer dog searches, was eventually found by a paramedic tucked up asleep in bush 15 metres from the road.